Virtual Wars Blog Tour Schedule

 

I want to first thank all of the amazing people who are hosting me for this blog tour. There are some others who are going to host me in the future, but weren't able to participate on such short notice. So without further ado...

• 10 Things I Wish I Knew About Writing - Posted 10/25/16 - A list of 10 things I wish I had known when I first started. Also an announcement of the release date for Virtual Wars: Initialization.
• Perseverance - Posted 10/26/16 -  Guest blog post that talks about chasing your dreams and the journey toward achieving them.
• Author Interview - Posted 10/27/16 - I am handcuffed to a chair and forced to answer questions. I am scarred from the experience, they promised a lollipop when we finished.
• Virtual Wars: Initialization Cover Reveal - Posted 10/28/16 - The grand cover reveal for Virtual Wars: Initialization

I will update the links with the direct link to each event once it has been posted.

Virtual Wars Blog Tour

I am writing this to announce the Virtual Wars Blog Tour! I have finished writing and editing my first novel! *runs in circles* *falls down* *foams at the mouth*

I also set up a Patreon for those of you who wish to sponsor me or are going to purchase this and future novels. It is on a per work basis, so Patreon will only bill you when I have the actual items ready to ship or send. The ebook version will be sent through Patreon before it is officially available on Amazon. You can check it out here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=3618552

Now it is time to get to work on letting everyone know about it! I plan to do a blog tour leading up to the release of the free ebook of prequel stories titled Virtual Wars: Booting Up. If you click on the Virtual Wars link at the top you can learn more about it and see the cover graphic for this prequel. I will also be doing a cover reveal for Virtual Wars: Initialization that same day (last day of the tour). The exact dates and times of this will be posted once I have finished organizing the tour. I'm shooting for 10/24-10/28.

For now I am looking to recruit anyone who would want to participate in the blog tour! If you are interested then please send me a message with your email address and your choice of the options below. If you want to participate, but have a different idea different from the ones listed below then please let me know. I am open to new ideas as long as you don't ask me to make a video of me picking a fight with Godzilla. I can be contacted at any of the social media links on this website, but for immediate response the best ways to contact me would be on Twitter, G+, or Facebook.

Twitter | Facebook | G+

LIST OF TERRIBLE OPTIONS FOR YOUR BLOG WEEEE

• Interview Me - I am quite the personality who will twist your questions so I can talk about how the Power Puff Girls have effected the worldwide PEZ economy. Seriously though, have you seen how crazy the PEZ economy is? Good luck investing your rainbows there! Or if you prefer I can be super serious "Business. Numbers! *draws chart in crayon* Assertion! Is this working?"
• Character Interview - You can interview one of the characters from my novel. If you don't feel comfortable asking the questions then I can do it based off an interview template. Choices of characters would be James, Miri, Hannah, or Kitsie. James is a bully and captain of the Anderson Virtual Wars team which is expected to be one of the best in the upcoming season. Miri is the main character, an athlete/nerd who just wants to try out for a Virtual Wars team. Hannah is a spitfire who sees herself as being a spy from the movies. Kitsie was born into a situation out of her control and has been on the run from law enforcement her entire life.
• Standard Guest Post - I will craft the standard guest blog post to cater to your audience. You can have as much or as little input as you would like. If you want me to blog about how truffles are the most amazing thing ever then I will. If you want me to pick the subject then I can do that as well.
• Cover Reveal - Obviously this is like the Highlander. There can only be one. This would be the last day of the tour. I will have to check out your blog and make sure it fits with what I am trying to do before agreeing to this, but until this spot is filled it is an option!

Confidence In Writing

The ups and downs an author goes through can drive anyone to drink. Think of all the stereotypes you have ever heard about authors. How many of them involve drinking and/or smoking? These vices generally calm the nerves of people who partake in them. The battle that authors go through daily is a battle of confidence.

This battle of confidence is vicious within the psyche of an author. What if what I am writing is total crap? Should I let anyone see it ever? Should I burn this and start over? This self doubt helps drive us to perfect our craft. Without this doubt authors would just publish their first drafts which are awful. Yes they are, don't delude yourself. You can do better.

This is why letting go is so hard for an author. I never feel like I am completely finished with a story. There is a finality that comes with publishing and saying that a story is finished. It never feels that way to me. The nagging question of "What happens next?" always tickles at the back of my mind. There are loose ends that never get resolved for whatever reason. If I covered everything then I would never finish anything and my novel would be 8,000,000+ pages. Still we have to let go at some point and click that publish button.

This feeling of the novel never being good enough drives authors to pour their heart and soul into them. It feels like a contract signed in blood is needed to write a novel. This is why some authors take bad reviews so personally. When we are targeted by a hate group it is even worse. Bad reviews can tank a work of fiction by cutting off opportunities for promotion like a Bookbub ad. So please do be kind to authors. We torture ourselves enough while writing a book. A harsh negative review can be soul crushing. That doesn't mean you shouldn't criticize authors, we need that criticism to improve our craft. The trick is to make it constructive criticism and not a Godzilla sized foot stomp.

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Writing Progress Updates

Virtual Wars Initialization (currently in editing hell)
Final edits: On page 160 of 168
Putting edits into computer: On page 138 of 168
Custom Chapter Headers: 33 of 41

Virtual Wars Running (Book 2)
Outline: 20%

Pump the Positivity

I was recently reminded of a principle that I try to live by, but have had a hard time sticking to in everything. It sounds like a simple concept. Stay Positive. Two words that sound like they should be so easy, but it is much easier to lose your way and find yourself in the forest of mushrooms. Trust me, nothing good comes from the forest of mushrooms.

I was reminded of this from a friend I ran into recently that I hadn't seen for a while. He had this energy and pure joy emanating from him. It was truly infectious. It made me wonder what drugs he was on and where could I get some. He wasn't on a drug of any kind. He was filled with positive vibes and the happiness of just being. I could see how everyone there was drawn to him and the energy he was putting out. Everyone wanted to be a part of this positive vibe.

Your Writing

I sat down today thinking about how I generally try to keep a positive vibe, but recently I have been slipping out of that. Little negative comments here and there have been slipping out. I don't want to be that person. The next thought I had was... How can I apply this to my writing? Usually everything is collapsing in a work of fiction and there isn't much room for positivity. Sure the characters joke around, but then Godzilla steps on Jimmy and everyone is sad again.

What I thought of wasn't about using that positive vibe within the actual work of fiction, but rather using it toward the actual work. An affirmation that yes what I am writing is going to be good, that the editing will fix the problems within, that the cover art will help consumers to click that purchase button, etc..

Over the time that I have been writing my first novel I have dreaded or even avoided working on it because I had negative feelings toward the busy work of editing or lack of direction toward a specific chapter. I wonder how much quicker it would have been completed if I had taken a more rainbow colored pixie dusted unicorn view of it.

I am prone to procrastinate or completely avoid working on a project when I have these negative feelings toward it. From now on I want to pump the positive view on things before sitting down to work on it. My hope is that it will squash the urge to pick up my phone or play video games to avoid it.

Progress Updates

Virtual Wars Booting Up (currently in editing hell)
Final edits: On page 146 of 168
Putting edits into computer: On page 116 of 168
Custom Chapter Headers: 29 of 41

Virtual Wars Running (Book 2)
Outline: 20%

The Olympics of Writing

It has been a while since I posted something on Ye Ole Blog. It isn't for lack of having things to write about, but rather my focus on fiction writing that I am trying to finish up. Lately I have been thinking about the Olympics (Who hasn't?). Specifically I have been thinking about how Godzilla would win nearly every event if he entered, but which country would he represent? Applying the Olympics to writing is another idea I had.

Obviously this isn't a sport like those we see at the Olympics, unless competitive sitting has become an event. There are also many different awards available to writers awarded annually. The physical nature of the Olympics limits the age of competitors, but with writing there is no age limit. It could be argued that with age comes experience and an established narrator voice that gives practiced writers an advantage.

For writing I would also like a return of amateur status as a requirement similar to what the Olympics once had. This could be a competition to help undiscovered amateur authors get discovered and perhaps launch a career. Of course that only comes with the competition gaining a measure of prestige. This could also be considered a team event with editors, beta readers, etc.

Difficulties

The Olympics has always been an international competition and there are many different languages that are spoken around the globe. This means that there would be a need for judges that speak every written language for the stories submitted for judging. How can we overcome this? If the competition is limited to one language then that gives an unfair advantage to native speakers of that language. How can you capture the true spirit of the Olympics without it being a just and fair worldwide competition?

Forming teams would be problematic in itself. Just starting out you can't expect nations to spend money to put together teams of writers for this kind of competition. Without national backing who would compete as an amateur writer? Who would organize the team then if given the opportunity? In Olympic competition they have national competitions to help decide who moves on to compete with the best in the world.

Events

In spite of these difficulties, I can't help but to think of how these events would go. If you look at Wattpad, they have many competitions going on all the time. I'm sure they probably have their own Olympics of writing going on that has probably concluded by now. Imagining a competition event based upon a writing prompt for each genre with a word count limit is relatively easy at this point. Word sprints are a regular occurrence on social media as well. Coming up with a plethora of events to compete in would be easy. This sort of thing makes me wonder What if?

Progress Updates

Virtual Wars Booting Up (currently in editing hell)
Final edits: On page 109 of 168
Putting edits into computer: On page 101 of 168
Custom Chapter Headers: 27 of 41

Virtual Wars Running (Book 2)
Outline: 20%